Fangoria magazine

Fangoria magazine

Here is an example of a horror film magazine, Fangoria, front cover, I am going to analyse the important features of the magazine that would

appeal to the target audience.

Masthead

This masthead is very bold and clear and therefore easy to read, this would attract a viewer as it is a famous American horror film magazine and they would be able to notice the title from a distance and then be able to see the images and the new film titles advertised on the front. It uses the colour red which is associated with horror films and blood, it also has a white background behind each of the letters to contrast with the image behind it. The way the font has some shape to it and is not standard and plain makes it more interesting and represents the unknown and unexpected situations in horror films. The font is placed right across the top of the page under the skyline so it takes up a large part of the front cover in order to be read clearly. The colour of the writing contrasts well with the image as the main colour used in the image is blue.

ImagesThe main image on this magazine front cover is a very dominant male with a very aggressive and threatening facial expression to scare the audience and capture there attention as they would wonder why he is looking this way with a blood covered face and red eyes. This image would appeal to an audience that are interested in horror films as it is typically a ‘horror movie’ pose. The way the character is not looking at the camera would make the audience wonder what the character is looking at and want to find out more.

These other images present on this magazine front cover would also appeal to an audience who are interested in horror movies as the characters look vulnerable and the audience would want to know why. These images create questions in the audiences minds and make them want to watch the film to find out why these characters are in these positions. These images are very dark and dull using colours such as black and grey which represent the mood of the image and the film they are from.

Skyline

This skyline is easy to read and very noticeable as it is at the very top of the magazine front cover above the masthead. It is in capital letters and used a bold and clear font. It is written in black contrasting against the pale blue background and the red and white writing below it. Key words in the skyline such as ‘new’ and ‘horrifying’ would appeal to an audience as the audience would be interested in horror films so to find out about a ‘horrifying new movie’ would appeal to their interests. The exclamation mark at the end emphasises the importance of the message and the excitement. At the start the word ‘thirteen’ is written in a bright yellow and orange font with a look as though a light is behind it which would catch the audiences eye and make them read the whole skyline, finding out something interesting and new that is included in this weeks magazine.

Sell lines

These sell lines are all written in different fonts and colours so each one stands out as separate from the others. They include names of actors which would appeal to the audience if an actor that they like is starring in a new film. This would make them want to open the magazine and read more about the film. The way images are used with the sell lines is effective as the audience are able to have a quick glimpse of what they are about to read and find out more about. The images also help to vary the text to image ratio.

This sell line is in the bottom right hand corner of the magazine and is on a slant to vary the style of the writing on the page, also if the audience can see ‘it’s all the rage again’ they would wonder why, want to be part of the rage and open the magazine to find out more.